Case study on Backlinks.

 


What Is a Backlink?

Simply define backlink is a link from one website to another essentially a reference or citation from one page to another. Backlinks are used to establish connections between websites and can help improve a website’s search engine ranking.

  • Also called inbound links or incoming links

  • A core part of Google’s ranking algorithm

Type of Backlink:

1. DoFollow Backlinks

  • These pass link equity (“link juice”) and directly help your rankings.

  • Most valuable kind of backlink. 

2. NoFollow Backlinks

  • Use the tag rel="nofollow" → tells Google not to pass authority.

  • Doesn’t directly affect rankings, but still:

    • Drives referral traffic

    • Adds trust and link diversity

    • Can lead to DoFollow links later 

Best Sources: Social media, forums, some blog comments, Wikipedia




3. UGC (User-Generated Content) Backlinks

  • Tag: rel="ugc"

  • Found in places like forums, blog comments, Q&A platforms (like Reddit, Quora)

  • Mostly NoFollow, but can help build trust and brand awareness

4. Sponsored Backlinks

  • Tag: rel="sponsored"

  • Used when you’ve paid for a link or advertisement

  • Required for transparency (to avoid violating Google’s guidelines)


 5. Editorial Backlinks

  • Natural links placed by a journalist or editor because your content is valuable

  • Example: A news article or blog linking to your company as a source

  • Most trusted and powerful type of link (often DoFollow

6. Contextual Backlinks

  • Placed within the body of relevant content
      

  • Surrounded by related text → great for SEO

  • Signals topical relevance

 7. Resource Page Backlinks

  • Links from a page that lists helpful tools or companies

  • Example: A blog’s “Top B2B Dev Agencies” linking to Mediusware

 8. Homepage / Footer / Sidebar Backlinks

  • Often sitewide, from non-content areas

  • Can be spammy if abused, but okay if it’s a legit partnership (like a tech tool listing Mediusware).

How backlink work

  • Creation of the Link - need relevant resources.

  • Search Engine Crawling - visiting websites.

  • Signal of Authority and Relevance -  vote or recommendation.

  • Impact on Ranking - enough reputable sites link to it.

  • Traffic Boost - drive direct traffic

Real-World Analogy - citations in a research paper.

Quality Beats Quantity:

  • unchecked

    Good Backlink - trusted, relevant site.

  • unchecked

    Bad Backlink - spammy, unrelated.

Link Buildings:

Adding links - manually add links to websites. 

Asking for links - reach out to website owners.

Buying links - pay for links.

Earning links - refer to others. 

Summary Table:

Type

SEO Value

Tag Used

Good For


DoFollow

✅ High

None

Rankings


NoFollow

⚠️ Low/Indirect

rel="nofollow"

Traffic/Brand


UGC

⚠️ Low

rel="ugc"

Forums/Engagement


Sponsored

🚫 For Paid Use

rel="sponsored"

Transparency


Editorial

✅✅ Very High

Usually DoFollow

Authority


Contextual

✅ High

Usually DoFollow

Relevance


Resource Page

✅ High

Usually DoFollow

Lists


Footer/Sidebar

⚠️ Risky

Varies

Only if relevant













Necessity of backlinks:

Fundamental part of establishing a website’s credibility and visibility. Backlinks  act as "votes" of authority from other websites, signaling to search engines that your content is valuable and credible, ultimately boosting your website's ranking and visibility. 



Benefit

Why It Matters


Rankings

Improves keyword visibility


Traffic

Brings users from search + referrals


Indexing

Gets your pages seen faster


Authority

Builds domain & brand credibility


Trust

Signals to Google that you’re reliable

 

Leads

More quality leads in the B2B pipeline









What Is Spam Score?

Denote the percentage of safe or trustable. It was checked by google.

  • Spam Score range:

    • 0–4%: Low risk

    • 5–7%: Medium risk

    • 8%+: High risk

  Spam Score Affects SEO

  • High spam score may effect on

    • Lower trust in your domain

    • Reduce ranking potential

    • Trigger penalties if associated with spammy backlinks



        

Best practices and strategy:

SEMrush is the best backlink tool.

Lot’s of backlink tools are available. The reasons are all-in-one SEO tools with link building, audits, keyword research.

Why I am choosing SEMrush:

  • Comprehensive Backlink Analysis

  • Powerful Link Building Tool

  • Competitor Backlink Tracking

  • All-in-One SEO Ecosystem

  • Trusted by Professionals

Best For:

  • SEO agencies

  • Growing B2B companies like Mediusware

  • Marketers managing multiple campaign

SEMrush vs. Other Tools:

  Feature

SEMrush

    Ahrefs

      Moz

  Ubersuggest

Backlink Audit

✅ Yes

✅ Yes

✅ Yes

❌ Limited

Link Building Tool

✅ Yes

❌ No

❌ No

❌ No

Outreach Management

✅ Yes

❌ No

❌ No

❌ No

Keyword Research

✅ Strong

✅ Strong

✅ Basic

✅ Basic

Competitor Analysis

✅ Advanced

✅ Advanced

✅ Moderate

✅ Basic



SEMrush’s Role in Today’s Strategy



SEMrush Feature

Old Strategy

              New Strategy

Backlink Analytics

Backlink Audit Tool

✅ (to remove spam/toxic links)

Link Building Tool

✅ (automated outreach & tracking)

Competitor Analysis

✅ (basic)

✅ (targeted + filtered by authority/relevance)

Brand Monitoring

✅ (track unlinked mentions to earn backlinks)



My Strategy :


  • Define Goals-  Improve keyword rankings for service pages.

  • Target Audience - B2B companies, startups, CTOs, project       managers.

  • Competitor Analysis - Turing.com , Toptal.com, Andela.com

  • Measure & Optimize - Domain Authority, Referral traffic.

  • Backlink Health Maintenance - Regular backlink audit via   SEMrush

  • Outreach Process- Follow up in 3–5 days, Build list of targets from SEMrush & Google search.   





Conclusion:
There are different types of backlink. Here I tried to discuss a little part of this. Without a doubt, backlink is a core part of a page or website credibility and visibility.

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